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Page 1 of 5 September 26, 2006 Issue #34 A salary and economic outlook study conducted through Leadership Network with Church Executive involving 56 very large churches--mostly evangelical

When asked, "Is your church planning any of the following emphases in 2007?

" CCN Kicks Off "Just Walk Across the Room" Campaign Building on the foundation laid by the award-winning and bestselling training series, Becoming A Contagious Christian, Christian Communication

1 Page 1 of 5 September 26, 2006 Issue #34 A salary and economic outlook study conducted through Leadership Network with Church Executive involving 56 very large churches--mostly evangelical megachurches--reveals that 44% of them are facing capital expansion issues in the coming months. And that capital campaign trend doesn't look to change anytime soon. When asked, "Is your church planning any of the following emphases in 2007?" the first-ranked choice among the six options (almost double the second-ranked choice) is "a capital funds drive for new property or building." CCN Kicks Off "Just Walk Across the Room" Campaign Building on the foundation laid by the award-winning and bestselling training series, Becoming A Contagious Christian, Christian Communication Network (CCN) is offering a new 90-minute broadcast with fresh perspectives from Willow Creek's Bill Hybels on "the next era of personal evangelism." "In an age when multiple services, multiple venues, and even multiple campuses are widely utilized, churches still find themselves investing heavily in bricks, mortar and technology equipment," says Warren Bird, Director of Research at Leadership Network, and primary writer of the report. "Newer churches eventually build a permanent facility or they often extensively adapt their rental facilities," Bird continues. "Older churches face continual maintenance and updating needs. Growing churches--new or old--must constantly expand to accommodate more people, and all churches at some point develop new ministries that require major capital investments." Surveyed churches use 14% of their budget for ministry beyond the congregation. The capital campaign is not always for the direct benefit of the church raising the money. According to the survey, 23% of responses indicate that during 2007 they will be making "an appeal to plant multiple new congregations," and 14% said that during 2007 they will be making "a gift to mission causes close to or more than $1 million." Both initiatives bring financial implications with them. Developing the Attitude Behind an Externally Focused Church Pastor Rick Rusaw, an active client in Leadership Network events, and Eric Swanson, Director of Externally Focused Churches Leadership Communities, have co-authored their second book, Living a Life on Loan: Finding Grace at the Intersections. Among the other 2007 plans of the surveyed churches, 19% will be making "an appeal to launch a new worship site" of their own congregation, 14% "a debt retirement funds drive" and 9% "a

Page 2 of 5 large appeal for any denominational cause of any type." Salary Range Another noteworthy topic in the survey results involves the salary range of the senior staff.

.. Survey: Americans More Religious Than Thought A Baylor University survey posits the idea that the United States--already one of the most religious nations in the developed world--may be even less

2 Page 2 of 5 large appeal for any denominational cause of any type." Salary Range Another noteworthy topic in the survey results involves the salary range of the senior staff. The survey asks about cash salary plus housing allowance for... Survey: Americans More Religious Than Thought A Baylor University survey posits the idea that the United States--already one of the most religious nations in the developed world--may be even less secular than previously suspected. "Six Catalytic Service Approaches: Taking First Steps through Great Days of Service" Free download Externally focused churches are discovering that large service events can serve as a catalyst for changing a church culture from internal to external. This paper details seven events and six approaches by churches for reaching out to their communities in full force. McLean Hosting Apologetics Conference McLean Bible Church near Washington D.C. will host the three-day 2006 Apologetics Conference, Nov , 2006, with the theme "Loving God with All Your Mind." 3D Online Church Nets 7,300 Visits Per Day St. Pixels, the world's first online 3D church, was created by UK Christian webzine shipoffools.com and is sponsored by the Methodist Church of Great Britain. During its pilot run, St. Pixels had as many as 41,000 attempts to log in to the church... Glocalnet is a network of church-planting churches worldwide, spearheaded by Leadership Network affiliate NorthWood Church in Keller, TX. Since the first Glocalnet regional cluster of churches formed in 2001, 18 clusters have emerged worldwide in cities such as Atlanta, Baton Rouge, Chicago, New York, St. Louis and Toronto. At the Glocalnet site, you can find out about internship, apprentice and church-planting opportunities and find resources for missional churches. You can find valuable information on a variety of ministry topics by visiting the Leadership Network Advance Archives. Some past issues include these feature articles: Beyond "Making Budget" for Your Church Permission Granted: Churches Giving Marketplace Leaders the Green Light for Kingdom Impact Church Healthcare Ministry: Four Categories to Watch Becoming a Present-Future Leader The Way of Jesus, A Journey of Freedom for Pilgrims and Wanderers

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4 Page 4 of 5 9/25/2006 CCN Kicks Off "Just Walk Across the Room" Campaign Building on the foundation laid by the award-winning and best-selling training series, Becoming A Contagious Christian, Christian Communication Network (CCN) is offering a new 90-minute broadcast with fresh perspectives from Willow Creek's Bill Hybels on "the next era of personal evangelism." Based on his own reflections and experiences collected during his most recent decade of ministry, Hybels has discovered that, rather than fancy formulas or memorized scripts, the absolute highest value in personal evangelism is staying attuned to and cooperative with the movement of the Holy Spirit--and proving to every Christ follower that they can do it. Be part of the nationwide satellite kick-off of "Just Walk Across the Room" on either Sunday, October 15 or Tuesday, October 17 via satellite and only on CCN. Developing the Attitude Behind an Externally Focused Church Pastor Rick Rusaw, an active client in Leadership Network events, and Eric Swanson, Director of Externally Focused Churches Leadership Communities, have co-authored their second book, Living a Life on Loan: Finding Grace at the Intersections. "When we come to the realization that our life is on loan from God and that what we do with it matters a great deal to Him, we begin a journey that transforms the church from internally driven to externally focused," the authors say. Their first book, The Externally Focused Church, provides a call to action for church leadership. This second book helps individuals explore a life where serving others provides an opportunity for their story to intersect others--and for lives to be forever changed. For additional books by authors related to Leadership Network, see the 18 titles released through a publishing partnership with Jossey-Bass, 3 titles through a partnership with Zondervan and three titles through a partnership with Lifeway.

5 Page 5 of 5 9/25/2006 Survey: Americans More Religious Than Thought A Baylor University survey posits the idea that the United States--already one of the most religious nations in the developed world--may be even less secular than previously suspected. The Baylor "American Piety in the 21st Century" survey, considered one of the most detailed ever conducted about religion in the United States, found that one in 10 people who picked "no religion" out of 40 choices did something interesting when asked later where they worship: They named a place. Considering that, Baylor researchers say, the percentage of people who are truly unaffiliated is more like 10.8 percent than 14 percent previously reported in other national studies. The difference between 10.8 percent and 14 percent is about 10 million Americans. "People might not have a denomination, but they have a congregation. They have a sense of religious connection that is formative to who they are," said Kevin D. Dougherty, a sociologist at Baylor's Institute for Studies of Religion and one of the survey's authors. Baylor is a leading Baptist university, located in Waco, Tex. (Excerpted from a Washington Post report) To read the full report, go to: McLean Hosting Apologetics Conference McLean Bible Church near Washington D.C. will host the three-day 2006 Apologetics Conference, Nov , 2006, with the theme "Loving God with All Your Mind." The training conference is designed to equip adults, college and high school students to defend and acclaim the Gospel. The gathering features a lineup of highly respected Christian scholars on a wide range of topics including creation and intelligent design, the reliability of the New Testament, world religions and new movements and contemporary barriers to faith. Speakers include N.T. Wright, Craig Hazen, William Lane Craig, J.P. Moreland, and Gary Habermas. The conference is sponsored by the C.S. Lewis Institute, McLean Bible Church, Biola University, and Evangelical Philosophical Society. 3D Online Church Nets 7,300 Visits Per Day St. Pixels, the world's first online 3D church, was created by UK Christian webzine shipoffools.com and is sponsored by the Methodist Church of Great Britain. During its pilot run, St. Pixels had as many as 41,000 attempts to log in to the church and averaged more than 7,300 visits per day, according to ASSIST News Service and Mission America Coalition report. More than half the visitors were under age 30 and 60% were male.

Top 10 Findings The project findings were very informative and contained a few surprises. Can you spot which statement below is false?

Top 10 Findings The project findings were very informative and contained a few surprises. Can you spot which statement below is false? One of the least understood roles in churches is the "second chair" role -- the person who reports directly to the senior pastor (or sometimes the church board) and oversees a large portion of the church